🌼 Springing Into Action 🌸
Gallery Events, Creator Talks, Exhibit launches, TCAF and more!
It’s been quite the busy year as we wrap up outstanding crowdfunding campaigns, and wait for issue 3 of BLITZ to arrive HOT OF THE PRESS in time for TCAF 2026 with a sweet, sweet, sweeeeeeeet Jim Rugg cover and poster! Take a peek:
Pretty dope, right?
Now that we’ve whet your appetite, let’s dive right into it all…
DOGHAUS: FULLY FUNDED AND MORE!
A massive thank you to all of Annabelle’s long-time fans and new fans alike who came out to support the first edition of DOGHAUS! It was quite the whirlwind campaign. If you somehow missed it, you can still pre-order yourself a copy of the softcover or hardcover edition on Kickstarter!
HEROES OF THE HOMEFRONT: LAUNCHING SOON!
We’ve been pumping up this doozy for a while! It’s a massive two-book edition with an expansive look at Canada’s GOLDEN AGE OF COMICS from 1941 to 1946!
The first book, The Creators, highlights the comic book writers and artists who shaped the industry during WWII, and is an extended and redesigned edition of Ivan Kocmark’s original Heroes of the Homefront. The Comics is an archive of over 750 comic book covers, all collected in one place for the first time, ever!
BE YOURSELF…OH, NOT LIKE THAT! • MAY 21
📅 Thursday, May 21, 6:30 PM
📍RAID Gallery & Cafe, 1720 Queen Street West, Toronto.
🎟️ Tickets available via EVENTBRITE.
🥂 Includes one complimentary drink courtesy of Barebones Bartending!
Join us tomorrow, Thursday, May 20th, for Be Yourself…Oh, Not Like That! Author and artist Emilia Strilchuk, in conversation with writer Stephanie Cooke (ParaNothern, Oh My Gods, Pillowtalk), discusses the challenges of self-narrative and the experiences that shaped her graphic memoir. Be Yourself…Oh, Not Like That! explores Emilias childhood and adulthood through the lens of a late-stage autism diagnosis, and the misunderstandings of an invisible disability.
VIVISECT • MAY 29
📅 Friday, May 29, 7:00 PM
📍RAID Gallery & Cafe, 1720 Queen Street West, Toronto.
🎟️ Tickets available via EVENTBRITE.
🥂 Includes one complimentary drink courtesy of Barebones Bartending!
📗 One copy of Vivisect.
Join us for the Vivisect book launch by Vivi Partridge, published by Inservice Comics.
Vivisect is “a raw and rambunctious diary comic about a big breakup, making your first graphic novel, therapy, mental health, and befriending characters from manga, by the author of Quiet Crossings” — Conundrum Press.
For the event, Vivi will discuss their artistic process in conversation with Mollie Cronin, author and artist of Future Me is Fat, also published by Conundrum Press. The discussion will be followed by a Q&A and book signing, along with drinks, bites, and music to celebrate!
RIDING WEST WITH ZAFRON IN MY BLOOD • JUNE 6
📅 Saturday, June 6, 7:45 PM
📍RAID Gallery & Cafe, 1720 Queen Street West, Toronto.
🎟️ Tickets available via EVENTBRITE.
🥂 Includes one complimentary drink courtesy of Barebones Bartending!
Join us for the EXHIBIT LAUNCH of Riding West with Zafron in My Blood, featuring the powerful work of artist Sarvi Ghadim. A striking tribute to Iranian womanhood, Sarvi’s series emerges in the wake of Iran’s Women, Life, Freedom movement, envisioning a haunting post-apocalyptic landscape where women have fought for liberation, but not without sacrifice. Stripped of skin and erased of identity, her figures remain as stark silhouettes of survival, resistance, and collective memory. At its heart, the work stands as a testament to resilience, courage, and the unwavering belief that no woman is left behind.
MEET US AT TCAF 2026!
📅 Saturday, June 6, - Sunday, June 7
📍Mattamy Athletic Centre, 50 Carlton Street, Toronto.
🎟️ Visit the TCAF website for more details.
One of our favourite festivals of the year is just around the corner. Toronto Comic Arts Festival returns to the Mattamy Athletic Centre at Toronto Metropolitan University, and RAID Press will be there.
We’re still waiting on our table numbers, but you can expect a full spread of fresh titles and a strong lineup of RAID creators in tow.
Mark your calendars and stay tuned, more details are coming soon!
And that’s just the beginning. We’ve got a show lined up nearly every month through the summer and into the fall. We’ll share the full rundown in our next newsletter — but to just tease a little, you’ll be able to catch us at Montréal Comic Con (July), Fan Expo Canada (August), Ottawa Comic Con (September), and Winnipeg Comic Con (October).
It’s shaping up to be a packed year, with more still to come.
Before we go, we wanted to give props to one of our RAID Spaces members, Marco Piana, and his team, who have launched City of Sirens: 5E Urban Adventures in the Eldrich Fallout. This 400+ page 5E campaign combines Lovecraftian dread, BioShock-style retro-futurism, and Fallout-flavoured dark humour.
CITY OF SIRENS • LIVE ON KICKSTARTER
City of Sirens takes place in the decaying post-apocalyptic port Angler’s Den, where Pirate-oligarchs control the streets, and an eldritch siren controls the radioactive fog, the Pale, that is slowly consuming the port. Underneath it all, the city’s fate is still being decided, and only one can shape what it becomes. This campaign includes 6+ fully realized districts, a city-builder toolkit, and a complete Level 1–7 adventure.
Head over to the Kickstarter and be among the first to receive a copy!
Enjoy the blossoming flowers, the onslaught of spring, and we’ll see you soon!
That BLITZ 3 cover is the epitome of comic book punk rock.
I can't wait to get my hands on it!